Commercial cotton nesting material as a predisposing factor for conjunctivitis in athymic nude mice (2001)

Bazille, P. G., Walden, S. D., Koniar, B. L. et al.

Abstract

A colony of Hsd:Athymic Nude-nu mice was found to have an increased prevalence of conjunctivitis. It was theorized, because Athymic Nude mice lack the normal fur, i.e., guard hairs, and eye lashes, the fibers from nestlets can easily become embedded in the conjunctiva and periorbital tissues of the eye predisposing the eyes to chronic irritation and subsequent infection. After treatment, conjunctivitis resolved in the mice housed without nestlets, but improved only slightly for the mice housed in boxes with nestlets present. As a result of these findings, Athymic Nude mice are now given paper towels as cage enrichment instead of nestlets.